In spite of the current strong emphasis in all EU countries on means to tackle youth unemployment, the participation of older individuals in the labour market remains a significant policy challenge. This is due to the interplay of the current recession, the ageing of the population and the need to control public welfare spending (pensions, unemployment benefits and social assistance). In this context, the European Social Observatory has started a new European Commission-funded project, called Policies for an Aged Workforce in the EU (PAWEU). The project is coordinated by the Fondazione G. Brodolini (Michele Raitano). Other partners are the Italian Social Security Institute and the Romanian Ministry of Labour, Family, Social Protection and the Elderly.
This innovative project aims at comparing and assessing the capacity of welfare systems and private enterprises to encourage older workers (50-69 years old) to stay in work as long as possible, while protecting them against unemployment and social exclusion risks. Following a comparative perspective, the project assesses a range of policies and practices – including pensions, social benefits, unemployment benefits, active ageing, active labour market policies and private firms' practices - in terms of both efficiency and equity. In the end, the question is whether older workers’ employability can be improved without jeopardizing their wellbeing.
OSE researchers involved in this project:
Dalila Ghailani, David Natali, Ramón Peña-Casas, Slavina Spasova and Bart Vanhercke
Policies for an Aged Workforce in the EU (PAWEU)
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